Chang'e (Changesite-(Y)), found in the basalt debris of Chang'e-5 lunar soil, is a new phosphate mineral belonging to the Merrillite family. The ideal chemical formula is (Ca8Y)□Fe2+(PO4)7, the crystal structure belongs to the trigonal crystal system, and the space group R3c. The particles are about 2~30 microns, in the form of tiny columns, and the associated minerals are iron olivine, monoclinic pyroxene, ilmenite, afeldspar, clinozircon, cristobalite quartz, meteorite iron sulfide and glass. It was voted by the Committee for the Classification and Nomenclature of New Minerals of the International Mineralogical Society (IMA) (CNMNC) and confirmed to be a new mineral. The mineral is the sixth new mineral discovered on the moon.
On September 9, 2022, Chinese scientists discovered a new mineral on the moon for the first time, named "Chang'eite".
On December 17, 2020, the mainland's Chang'e-5 lunar probe successfully returned to Earth with 1,731 grams of lunar "native products", which is the second time that humans have collected lunar samples after more than 40 years, and also makes China the third country to successfully collect lunar samples.
In June 2021, Chang'e-5 lunar samples were opened for application to the whole society. The Beijing Institute of Geology of the Nuclear Industry (Beijing Institute of Nuclear Geology) is one of the first 13 research institutions to obtain lunar samples, and has successively approved three projects, namely "Chang'e-5 lunar sample fusion nuclear nuclide (3He) research", "Chang'e-5 lunar sample uranium (thorium) nuclear energy nuclide and isotope research" and "lunar nuclear energy element uranium nuclide research and significance", the goal is to carry out independent basic geological research on lunar fission and fusion resources, and provide important basic data for lunar evolution and lunar resource evaluation.
In the process of mineralogical research on the first batch of lunar soil powder samples, the research team of the Institute of Nuclear and Geotechnical Research discovered clues to new minerals. At that time, it was a particle of about 10 microns, which interacted with pyroxene, and there was no way to remove pyroxene cleanly regardless of experimental methods or later data processing, so the ideal structural data was not obtained.
After applying for the second lunar soil sample, the research team counted 140,000 particles on the sample target and found some traces of new minerals, but only one of the single-crystal structures could be detected, and this one was split into three small pieces. In the end, the team used focused ion beam electron microscopy to cut out a pure single crystal particle of 10×7×4 microns, which is less than one-tenth of the average diameter of an average human hair.
The scientists then transferred the particles to a single-crystal diffractometer to collect diffraction data and finally interpret the crystal structure of the new mineral. They conducted Raman spectroscopy analysis, crystal optical description, physical property calculation, etc., and determined that the new mineral was a new mineral that had never been discovered before.
On January 17, 2023, in the field of mineralogy, mainland scientists discovered a new lunar mineral through the study of Chang'e-5 lunar samples, and named Chang'e, which is also the sixth new mineral discovered by humans on the moon.
Chang'e stone, its English name is Changesite-(Y), which is composed of change (Chang'e's Chinese pinyin) + s + ite (English suffix, indicating minerals) + Y (special component suffix).
The research team of the Institute of Nuclear and Geotechnical Research wrote a research report and submitted it to the New Mineral Classification and Nomenclature Committee of the International Mineralogical Society. In August 2022, the International Mineralogical Society's Committee for New Mineral Classification and Nomenclature unanimously approved the Chang'e Rite Research Report and issued a letter of approval.
After the review of 20 mineralogists from many countries, the new mineral Chang'e (Changesite-(Y)) declared by the lunar soil research team of the Institute of Nuclear and Geogeological Research was officially approved by the New Mineral Classification and Nomenclature Committee (CNMNC) of the International Mineralogical Society (IMA) on August 3, 2022, with the approval number IMA2022-023a.
According to the scientific research team of the Institute of Nuclear and Geogeological Research, the reason why it is named "Chang'e Stone" is: first, to commemorate the first time that the Chang'e project retrieved samples; Second, the pronunciation is closer to the Chinese Chang'e stone pronunciation, and it is also friendly to foreigners; Third, "S" is the first letter at the beginning of the Chinese "Shi-Shi" and the English "Shi-Stone", and "Shi" is usually the general term for "mineral rock" by the public; Fourth, the name Changesite can be divided into Change (Chang'e) and site (address), which can be understood as Chang'e's place of residence, that is, the moon, and can be interpreted as the landing site of Chang'e-5 on the moon; Fifth, the name can also be understood as Change and site, which can be extended to mean that the location of this moon landing is different from the previous Apollo (United States) and Luna (Russia). The naming of the new mineral "Chang'e" expresses the scientific team's tribute to China's aerospace and China's deep space exploration.
On September 9, 2022, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) and the China Atomic Energy Agency (CAEA) jointly released the latest scientific results of Chang'e-5 in Beijing: Chinese scientists discovered a new mineral on the moon for the first time, named it "Chang'eite".
On September 9, 2022, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) and the China Atomic Energy Agency (CAEA) jointly released the latest scientific results of Chang'e-5 in Beijing: Chinese scientists discovered a new mineral on the moon for the first time, named it "Chang'eite".
Chang'e is the sixth new mineral discovered on the moon, and the continent has become the third country in the world to discover a new mineral on the moon after the United States and the former Soviet Union.
"Chang'e Stone" is another name with Chinese cultural characteristics in lunar scientific exploration, in addition to the names of lunar geographical entities such as "Guanghan Palace", "Weaver Girl" and "River Drum", which is a major scientific achievement made by the mainland in the field of space science, and is also a powerful exploration of cross-industry and cross-professional cooperation between nuclear and aerospace.
Chang'e's phosphate minerals are common on Earth, but they do not contain Chang'e, proving that its formation requires a very different environment and conditions than Earth's. In the future, by studying the formation conditions of Chang'e, we can deduce what kind of special historical process the moon underwent during its evolution, which is of great significance for understanding the origin and evolution of the moon. In addition, whether the rare earths contained in Chang'e have development value is also worthy of further research in the future.